Chapter 116: Reunions Never Go As Imagined

Chapter 116: Reunions Never Go As Imagined

With a friendly wave, Gu Tian left Hui alone on the vertebra. Immediately, Hui felt a hundred predatory gazes land on his shoulders. He glanced left and right, then darted into the immortals cave carved into the side of the bone.

The cave only extended about ten meters, the length of the bone. Barren, it sported no decoration or additions. In a few places, mysterious stains marked the walls and floor, and in one place, a deep rift cut into the ceiling. Taking it all in, Hui shivered. This is a demonic sect!

Zhubi wriggled out from where hed hidden in Huis robes and crawled to the floor. He slithered around, tongue flickering, deeply interested in the room.

Is this some kind of great ancestor of yours, Zhubi? Hui asked playfully. He stretched, then changed his ghoul-skins ragged robes for the black robes hed been given. Adjusting them tightly to his frame, he settled down, back against a bone wall.nove(l)bi(n.)com

Extending his qi and mental energy, he examined the room more deeply. After a second, he blinked. I cant sense anything outside of this bone. Is it the same from outside? Curious, he bolted outside and extended his energy again, this time into the cave.

His probe extended only to the surface of the bone. When the qi touched the bone, it slipped off like oil off water. The same with his mental energy.

Hui drew out a strand of death qi and pointed it toward the bone. The death qi drilled into the bone. A white mist lifted off the bone.

After a second, Huis eyes widened. He yanked his death qi back and stored it back in his second dantian. Its eating my death qi! Dangerous, too dangerous! If I want to push through it, I can, but only at the price of my precious death qi! This small cultivator needs to gain death qi, not lose it!

Hui nodded to himself. This vertebra is invaluable to me. I absolutely cannot lose it. No matter who challenges me, I must stand strong. After all, inside, I can cultivate my qi and life qi with no one any the wiser, without having to worry about masking it with what little death qi I have. Ill have to lift my original dantian to fourth tier alongside my death dantian to escape, because, after all, I want to avoid falling out of my body and pissing off Zhu Diyu. With this bone, I can do just that. If I lose this vertebra, however, Ill be in the outer sect. I wont be able to hide out there.

He turned and looked up the snakes bones. From the tail bone where he stood, they spiraled up into the sky, immeasurably high above him. He clenched his fist. And if I want to reach fourth stage, I need more qi. In other words, I must climb the coils!

But first, I need to find more death qi. Im right where I started.

Except now Im in a demonic sect. Surely they have death qi somewhere. That, or techniques for cultivating death qi. He looked nervously at the place where the bone met the stone, then took a deep breath. Time to go outside.

Zhubi, come here, Hui said, jogging to the cave mouth and holding out his hand. The snake slithered up his arm, but this time Hui stopped him before he settled around his neck. Stay in my robes. Theres some people here that might recognize you.

Zhubi nodded, settling around his arm instead.

Grasping his sword, making sure his talismans were readily to hand, Hui stepped out into the sect.

Eh, Hui said, taken aback.

She smiled and grabbed his hand, pulling it close. Oh! This flint, is it how you stabilized your body after death? How interesting, Ive never seen it done before. Is that why youre so intelligent? Reaching up, she touched the flint embedded in the forehead of Huis ghoul skin. The stone pushed against his skin inside the ghoul skin, slightly cold.

He flinched back. Elder sister?

Ah! Im sorry, Im sorry. I just love undead, you know? Theres so many of them. So many types. Did you know, among ghouls, theres nearly two hundred types? I believe one day, ghoul cultivation will overcome pill cultivation! The two arent that diverged, in the first place. You refine a corpse in a coffin, but aside from that

Elder sister! Hui protested, taking a step away.

She clasped her hands over her mouth. Im sorry! I just get so excited when I meet a new ghoul er, death cultivator. Fellow Daoist, could I examine you, please?

Absolutely not! If you find out Im actually a live human, Im toast! He shook his head woodenly.

O-oh. She stared at her feet, crestfallen. A second later, she perked up. Ah! Its because were strangers, right?

Eh? Hui said, startled by the mood whiplash.

She nodded. That must be it. Im Fa Chuyou. Would would you like to take a stroll around? I know a lot about the sect and the lands around it.

Im Xie Hao. Hui considered her proposal for a moment, then nodded. Please, Elder Sister, lead the way.

I dont know anything about the sect. A guide is indispensable! She might even know where is best to cultivate death qi. I refuse to believe that a demonic sect has no repository of death qi!

Fa Chuyou beamed. She opened her mouth when suddenly, a stormy look fell over her face again. You! What did I tell you?

Hui turned, curious.

Another ghoul shambled toward the platoon of ghouls, their steps shaky and uneven. They turned their face to Hui and Fa Chuyou, and Hui gasped. Though somewhat melted, and worn by death and the elements, he couldnt possibly forget the face that had forced him to play dead for the first time ever, the face that had led to his awakening to qi.

Chang Bolin? Hui breathed.